WASHINGTON, D.C. – Jeff Krehely, Director of the LGBT Research and Communications Project at the Center for American Progress Action Fund, issued the following statement on today’s introduction of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, or ENDA, in the U.S. Senate, and the Uniting American Families Act, or UAFA, in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate:
The Center for American Progress Action Fund applauds today’s introduction of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act in the U.S. Senate, and the Uniting American Families Act in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate.
Research shows that ENDA is clearly needed: 44 percent of gay, lesbian, and bisexual people face workplace discrimination, as do at least 47 percent of transgender people. ENDA will help end this discrimination by requiring workplaces to make their hiring and firing decisions based on a person’s ability to get the job done, and not irrelevant factors such as their sexual orientation or gender identity. We thank Sens. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Mark Kirk (R-IL), Tom Harkin (D-IA), and Susan Collins (R-ME) for their leadership on ENDA in the Senate.
We also would like to thank Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) for his work introducing UAFA in the House today, and Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) for introducing the bill in the Senate. UAFA would put gay Americans on equal legal footing as their heterosexual counterparts when it comes to sponsoring foreign partners for immigration purposes. Currently, the Defense of Marriage Act forces bi-national same-sex couples to either live separate lives or leave the United States if they want to be together. There is no rational basis for this policy, and UAFA would help right this blatant wrong.
We urge Congress to move both bills as quickly as possible. They would have real, positive impact on people’s lives, and reflect the best of our country’s ideal of ensuring its citizens equal treatment under the law.
To speak to Jeff Krehely regarding the introduction of ENDA or UAFA, please contact Christina DiPasquale at 202-481-8181 or [email protected].
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